There's Hell to Pay
by Eurudike
Summary: AU - Ciel had expected that if such a place existed, he would end up in hell. What he didn't expect was for the so-called Prince of said place - Sebastian Michaelis to take a certain liking to him. Sebastian/Ciel.
1. Chapter 1

**Hell To Pay**

**PART 1**

'And if your heart stops beating  
I'll be here wondering  
Did you get what you deserve?  
The ending of your life  
And if you get to heaven  
I'll be here waiting, babe  
Did you get what you deserve?'

**-My Chemical Romance, **_**Dead!**_

_Chapter One._

He awoke to darkness. The sky, it seemed, was black. It was an unusual experience for him – had he fallen asleep outside? But there were no stars out and he couldn't think of a place near where he lived where stars wouldn't be visible.

He moved to get up and realized that the ground wasn't as he had expected, it was hard and rough – wood. Sitting up fully, he saw that he was in fact in a boat.

Ciel looked around curiously. He seemed to be in some sort of a tunnel, and looking down he could see that the water was not a midnight blue as he had expected, rather a blood red decorated by white lilies. Where was he?

He was feeling more panicked by the moment, and his instinct to flee kicked in. He leaned very carefully over the edge of the boat and reached into the water to try and paddle the boat along, but he brought his hands back to himself in shock when he felt the liquid. The consistency felt wrong, it felt more like – no but that was ridiculous, where on earth would one find a river of blood?

_Maybe you're not on earth?_

No, the idea was preposterous, Ciel Phantomhive did not believe in myths, he believed in fact. And fact was that it was impossible for someone to wake up on a boat that was sailing through a blood river.

It had to be some sort of illusion, perhaps the lighting just made it look red – but there was no lighting – or the liquid had been polluted with something to make it so thick – he knew of nothing that could do that, though.

"This is ridiculous," he mumbled to himself, "where could I be?"

This could just be a very realistic dream, or maybe someone was playing a joke on him? That had to be it, this was some elaborate prank. "Okay, this isn't funny," he called out, standing up and crossing his arms across his chest with a frown.

"I'm not going to get freaked out by something as ridiculous as this, it's over now."

He huffed, frustrated and listened to his own voice echo. It seemed as if the tunnel was rather long.

As the sound he had made began to die down, Ciel became aware of other noises, unsettling noises. The first he noticed was an almost mechanical sounding creaking that made him jump slightly. He had to strain his eyes to try and see what it was that was making such an unusual sound and what he finally saw made his eyes widen. The walls of the tunnel were _moving_.

The second sound he could hear was a subtly eerie one – it was whispering. He did know what the whispering was, it sounded like there were dozens of people leaning close to his ear simultaneously. He couldn't separate one sound from another; it melded together like white noise.

What kind of place was this? There was no way this was some kind of joke, no one he knew would go through so much effort. Which meant, by process of elimination – this was either a dream or reality. Ciel was far from ready to accept the latter; it must just be a dream.

Of course, that explained it all – when did dreams ever make sense? He just needed to hurt himself, that was what people often said about being in dreams – pinch me, wake me up! He gently raised his left hand, clutching some of the skin on his right forearm between his thumb and index finger. Ciel applied the pressure and almost yelped when he felt the pain.

He was less upset by the pain and more by the fact that he could _feel_ the pain. You're not meant to be able to feel pain in dreams, are you?

"This is ridiculous," he spoke aloud, as if that would make his thoughts create sense, "there has to be some kind of a reasonable explanation for this."

The sound of moving water followed by a loud thump that vibrated the boat made Ciel jump and look towards the source.

A hand. A freaking _hand_ was clutching on to the side of the boat, dripping with the red river. Rational thinking decided to evade Ciel and he jumped back with a shout, tripping himself and landing in a seated position in the boat. At least he didn't fall over board.

He was frozen, stuck watching as the hand was joined by another and finally yet ever so slowly, a body pulled themselves up from the water and climbed into the boat. The figure stood and Ciel gaped at the unusual looking man.

He was clothed in black, with long grey hair and pallid features. The man laughed in a way that made the boy's hair stand on end. But Ciel was quickly overcome with reality. He was Ciel Phantomhive, how could he possible act with anything but dignity? He heaved himself up so he was standing, the two were now facing each other from opposite ends of the boat which was only a little more than two metres long and half as wide.

"Identify yourself," Ciel demanded, his voice surprisingly steady.

The man laughed creepily. "Ah, so sorry I'm late, I was busy feeding Cerberus, you see. Most around here call me the Undertaker, but where you're from I do believe Charon or ferryman are more familiar terms."

What was this – Greek mythology class? This man was obviously quite unwell in the head. "What is it you want from me?" Ciel asked.

The Undertaker chortled again. "Well, if you don't pay me for my services, I won't be able to stop the tunnel from rebuilding itself in a never ending cycle. You'll sail the river for eternity, as many others have been doomed to." He spoke as if this were the most amusing thing that could happen and Ciel shuddered, reaching into his pockets for anything yet coming up with nothing.

"I don't have any money on me," he stated, his mind already concocting ways for him to evade his supposed fate.

The man laughed. "It's a silly human myth that says I request a coin, what I really want is…" the man leaned forward and Ciel felt a moment of anticipation, "A good laugh."

"Okay, now I'm _certain_ this isn't a dream. There is no way that my mind would create something so ridiculous," Ciel mumbled, more to himself than to the man.

But that left only one option on Ciel's deductions, which meant this was… "Wait!" Ciel looked the Undertaker straight in the eyes and frowned, "You, Charon the ferryman are asking for a payment after feeding Cerberus? And if this isn't a dream nor a joke but reality then that means…"

"I'm dead."

The Undertaker continued his laughter. "You only just figured it out?"

"But I don't remember dying. And this all, is just a fairy tale, a myth. This can't be happening."

"Yet it is."

Ciel scowled, realizing the man was taking great pleasure in mocking him. "No. I gave up the idea of this when I gave up on ridiculous things like Santa. I'm sixteen. I don't remember dying." He reasoned, before it hit him.

"This is a hallucination, right? I must have been in some accident and the drugs are making me react. Of course. I can probably wake myself out of it by a shock." But how to shock himself?

Ciel smirked suddenly, the metaphorical light bulb going off in his head. "Well, this is good bye then, Undertaker. It's been… weird."

And with that, Ciel closed his eyes and let himself fall overboard.

* * *

He had expected to wake up, not to choke on the thick liquid of the river nor to be dunked under and to struggle pulling himself back up. It was an odd experience, for he felt like he didn't need the air and yet his common sense was telling him to breathe. He felt almost disconnected from himself, as if he was changing his shape. He felt something clutch onto the back of his shirt and he would have tried to fight it off had he not been so disorientated. Although it was probably a good thing he hadn't tried to fight as he was heaved onto the boat again, coughing and spluttering.

The Undertaker laughed so loudly that Ciel thought that the echo of it would continue for hours. "My, my, that was definitely a good laugh. No one's ever been stupid enough to jump into there before. You're lucky I saved you or you would have surely turned into a lost soul like the rest of them."

Ciel coughed and glared at him, "_You_ were swimming in there before."

"Yes, but if I were to become lost then there would be no one to ferry the dead, you see. I am necessary to the underworld and so it does not try to swallow me."

Ciel sighed. "So I'm definitely dead?"

"As dead as a… coffin nail!" He chortled.

There was nothing else he could think of, Ciel had realized that the most likely outcome of this was that the strange man was telling the truth and everything that Ciel had been so confident in believing was a lie.

"Very well then, you've had your laugh so take me to wherever it is that you're meant to take me," Ciel requested.

The man held up his left hand and clicked. Suddenly, the sound of the walls moving ceased and the boat was plunged into darkness.

It could have been minutes or hours that the boat drifted through the blackness, but eventually another click was heard and simultaneously light appeared as a dozen wooden torches blazed with fire. The river had run into a small lake, it seemed, at the very end of which was a small patch of barren dirt that was before two things.

The first was a huge gate, set into the stone wall so that what was beyond was unseen. The second was a dog and Ciel knew within an instant that this was the infamous Cerberus. It was huge, at least four times his height, white and had three big heads. It watched the boat carefully and Ciel felt that the only reason that it was subdued was because he was with the Undertaker.

"Well then, my newly deceased boy," the Undertaker laughed, "Welcome to Hell."

[END OF PART 1, CHAPTER 1]

* * *

**A/N: Just a heads up, this story is a mish-mash of Ancient Mythology, Modern Mythology and things I make up. Reviews for the author?**

* * *

_**MYTHOLOGY (Feel free to skip/skim read)**_

_Here's a few facts that I've used/modified in the story, it's mostly from Wikipedia because I couldn't be bothered using my own words._

_-Cerberus in Greek and Roman mythology, is a multi-headedhound(usually three-headed)which guards the gates of Hades, to prevent those who have crossed the river Styx from ever escaping._

_-In Greek mythology,Charon or Kharon is the ferryman of Hades who carries souls of the newly deceased across the rivers Styx and Acheron that divided the world of the living from the world of the dead. A coin to pay Charon for passage, usually anobolus or danake, was sometimes placed in or on the mouth of a dead person. Some authors say that those who could not pay the fee, or those whose bodies were left unburied, had to wander the shores for one hundred years._

_-The river and the moving tunnel I basically made up, I'm not sure if there is anything resembling them in mythology_


	2. Chapter 2

**Hell To Pay**

**PART 1**

'Can you hear me cry out to you?  
Words I thought I'd choke on  
Figure out  
I'm really not so with you anymore  
I'm just a ghost'

**- My Chemical Romance, **_**This is How I Disappear**_

_Chapter Two._

Ciel raised an eyebrow and the Undertaker laughed. "You don't seem to want to deny that you belong here."

Ciel shook his head, "I gave up on God a long time ago, and if such a place existed I knew I was bound for Hell."

It wasn't as he had expected. The man opened the gate slowly, revealing a land of red earth that was covered in haphazardly built houses – all with features from different eras. The houses seemed to get bigger and less destroyed the more they travelled into the city, Ciel realized. There were people everywhere, and at one point he turned to look at one at them and regretted it as the instant he was focused on observing people was the instant he saw that they were not people at all.

Some were completely human looking but with a simple difference –horns or wings sprouting from their backs – and others were more grotesque – one looked as if he was twisted around himself in ways that shouldn't have been physically possible.

"Are you scared, little one?" Undertaker cackled and Ciel shuddered.

"A Phantomhive is too prideful to be scared."

The moment Ciel uttered this, the man turned to face him so suddenly that Ciel jumped backwards. "What is your name?" He asked, all hints of humour gone from his expression.

"Ciel Phantomhive," he replied indignantly, "not that I see how that is any of your concern."

"What are you doing in Hell?" The Undertaker asked in shock.

"You said before, I belong here."

The man laughed and stepped closer to Ciel, "A word to the wise, if you don't want to see the true meaning of Hell, never utter your surname to a soul. If they ask, you've forgotten since your death."

Ciel huffed. "I don't intend on giving personal information out to just anyone, bastard."

"Make sure you keep it that way."

Ciel had to wonder why the man seemed so intent on him not revealing his name to another. Was 'Phantomhive' some kind of cursed word for devils?

"I have to go now, a new soul to ferry," the Undertaker chuckled, momentarily forgetting his seriousness from just before, "Hell just gets bigger day by day, so many sinners as time goes on."

He turned and walked away from Ciel and the boy started to run after him. "Wait! What am I meant to do?"

Undertaker continued to walk, not even turning back once as he replied with an exuberant laugh, "That's not my problem, Ciel."

Ciel scowled. "Bastard," he murmured.

Ciel sighed as he walked along, kicking a stone with each step. He'd been walking for hours and he was not tired as he had expected but rather, bored. Really, he hadn't been in Hell for even a day and he was used to it. What more was there to see? Just buildings and wretched looking creatures, nothing special at all. Although every now and then there was a beautiful one, so beautiful that they would have looked heavenly had it not been for that something sinister they carried – whether it be the way they walked or just the smirk on their face.

Ciel kicked the stone in front of him once more and was forced to look up when he heard not the usual sound of the rock bouncing along the ground, but a soft clink.

Before him stood a woman, clad in Scarlet. Her face was pale and angular, her eyes as red as the fieriest pits of well… hell. She had two small horns delicately curving from just above each ear and her outfit was a modified reminiscent of the Victorian Era.

"Well, hello there cutie~," she cooed, "Why, I could just eat you all up!"

Ciel raised a delicate eyebrow. "As interesting as that sounds, I'll have to pass."

She laughed, "Oh, darling. People call me Madam Red, or Asmodeus. But I prefer the latter as those silly humans myths have gotten the idea of Asmodeus completely wrong."

"I'm Ciel," he murmured, deciding to heed the Undertaker's earlier warning.

Madam Red smiled, "New in town?"

"You could say that," he muttered, "Is it obvious?"

She nodded vigourously, "Very. You don't seem to have adopted any demonic features yet. Don't worry though, honey, you'll mature eventually."

"Thanks for the reassurance," Ciel muttered dryly.

"You're welcome. Hey if you're not busy, why don't I show you a- "she cut herself off when her gaze strayed to something behind Ciel and she fell instantly into a bow. "Your Highness!" She chirped and Ciel turned to see who the intruder was.

A man, maybe in his early twenties was standing there, dressed in a midnight black suit and smirking as if the Madam's little bow was amusing to him. His hair was black and messy, his eyes red. But not the kind of red the Madam possessed in her eyes, but a kind that looked as if they had merely been stained with blood. Ciel was instantly wary.

"Madam Red, do you plan on mocking me so delightfully every time we meet?" The man asked.

She laughed, bringing herself back to a standing question. "Of course, is it not our tradition, My Lord?"

Ciel regarded the man carefully. She had referred to him as 'your highness' and 'my lord' which left only one thought in Ciel's head for the man's identity. He had to be some powerful kind of demon. The kind that even Hell's prince – or apparently, princess – would bow to.

"Have you been procrastinating here all day, Madam?"

"Not at all! I've already sent four souls to level two today."

Did this mean he was Lucifer? Or Satan? Ciel's eyes widened. Phantomhive's didn't fear anything, but there was a difference between cowardice and stupidity. He had to get away from this freak and it seemed that the man hadn't noticed Ciel yet, he realized with relief. The boy gently began to edge away, as subtly as he could manage.

The man's head snapped towards Ciel's direction and the boy froze instantly. He smirked in a way that would make even Hercules cower. "Who's this stray kitty?"

"Ah, Ciel, you're screwed. Once Sebastian calls you a kitty there's no escape. The idiot loves all things felines," Madam laughed.

Ciel looked at her in a way that questioned her sanity. But she had said that the man's name was Sebastian, which had to mean that he couldn't possibly be His Infernal Majesty. "Who are you?" Ciel asked the man, finding no desire to be polite.

"Sebastian Michaelis is what I go by, but you don't seem to realize that I am the current ruler of this land."

Fuck. Of course, of course Ciel had to meet the freaking Devil during his first day of Hell. The Ferryman Charon was actually an eccentric, dark comedy driven main called undertaker. Asmodeus, prince of hell and personification of lust, was a scarlet hued and big busted woman. And His Infernal Majesty was some pompous, cat loving –albeit very attractive- man called Sebastian.

Really, did _mythology _get anything right? This was just ridiculous.

"This is Ciel, er – what was your last name?" Madam murmured.

Ciel frowned, "I've forgotten a lot of things since I woke up on that boat." He had opted not to tell a lie but creatively tell the truth instead – he had forgotten quite a few things, just not his last name.

"Hmm…" Sebastian looked at him as if he was critiquing every aspect of the boy's appearance.

"How about I show you around, Ciel?" Sebastian grinned and Ciel couldn't help but feel as if this were one of those moments that for the rest of your existence you would regret having ever happened.

On one hand, Ciel had no idea where to go, what to do or who to speak to here. On the other hand, this was some freakish Devil that was offering to spend time with him.

The first problem needed to be solved the most though, and Ciel was beginning to suspect that he didn't actually have a choice in the matter – phrasing the offer like a question had just been a courtesy.

"Sure," Ciel mumbled, defeated by his own logic.

Sebastian smirked widely.

"Ah, good now that that's settled, perhaps you should leave now." Madam Red cut in, seeming nervous suddenly.

"Why the sudden hastiness, Madam?" Sebastian asked, pretending to feel hurt, "Are you so eager to be rid of me?"

"Never, Sebastian, it's just that…" She trailed off.

"Is there not an to this sentence or do you need time to come up with an excuse?" Sebastian pondered.

Madam sighed, "Shut up, Sebastian. I'm trying to warn you that at any time Grell-"

"Ooooh Sebastian~."

"- could arrive," Madam finished with a defeated look and Ciel had to assume that the rush of red that suddenly latched itself onto Sebastian was the one Madam was referring to as 'Grell'.

Ciel just gaped at the fact that someone had the audacity to throw themselves onto someone with the authority of Sebastian.

"Grell, if you don't remove yourself from my personal space, I will have no qualms in resorting to crushing that face of yours," Sebastian scowled.

"Oh, Sebby, you're sooo mean!" Grell pouted for a moment before adopting a Cheshire grin, "That's what I love about you." He stepped back from the Devil.

Grell turned his attention towards the previously ignored Ciel. "Who's the brat?"

Taking a look at the man, dressed in a simple black and white outfit but topped off with a ruby coat to match his long, scarlet hair – he seemed to have a thin black tail, ending with what looked like a little arrow.

"No one of your concern, Grell. He and I shall be leaving now. And get back to work." Sebastian signalled for Ciel to follow him and strode away, without a glance back to see if the younger boy was actually complying.

Ciel heaved a sigh and took after the man. At least he wouldn't be cursed with the boredom he had often met on earth…right?

[END OF PART 1, CHAPTER 2]

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for reading. Reviews always very welcome. **

* * *

_**MYTHOLOGY (Feel free to skip/skim read)**_

_And the fun little facts of this chapter…_

_-Asmodeus also is referred to as one of the seven princes of hell. In Binsfeld's classification of demons, each one of these princes represents one of the seven deadly sins(Pride, Lust, Envy, Sloth, Greed, Gluttony, and Wrath). Asmodeus is the demon of lust and is therefore responsible for twisting people's sexual desires. It is said that people who fall to Asmodeus' ways will be sentenced to an eternity in the second level of hell._

_-Asmodeus is supposed to be an ugly, man with multiple heads in mythology, thus why Madam Red is annoyed at the humans._

_-And Grell, although I didn't specifically mention it, is Leviathan. In Demonology, Leviathan is one of the seven princes of Hell and its gatekeeper. He's the demon of Envy._

_-Finally, our darling Sebastian is loosely based on Lucifer, In English, "Lucifer" generally refers to the Devil, although the name is not applied to him in the New Testament. He's the demon of Pride, which is why he's taken an interest in our prideful little Phantomhive._


	3. Chapter 3

**Hell To Pay**

**PART 1**

'He said will you  
Defeat them  
Your demons  
And all the non-believers,  
the plans that they have made?

Because one day  
I'll leave you  
A PHANTOM  
To lead you in the summer  
To join The Black Parade'

**- My Chemical Romance, **_**Welcome to The Black Parade**_

_Chapter Three._

"So Ciel, is there anything you want to know about Hell?" Sebastian was oddly amiable as they walked together and Ciel silently noticed the houses getting better the further the pair went.

The boy's gaze flitted momentarily to the demon for a brief moment. Ciel had a lot of questions, but trusting the supposedly most evil man in hell to answer him wasn't exactly high on the boy's to-do list.

"For now, you could do with telling me where on earth you're leading me to," Ciel told him with an air of faked nonchalance.

"You mean where _in Hell_," Sebastian smirked, Ciel not sharing his amusement.

"It's a figure of speech. Just answer me."

"I asked if there was anything you wanted to know, but at no point did I agree to tell you anything." While his face turned impassive, Ciel felt that the demon was enjoying himself.

Ciel raised an eyebrow. "Have it your way. I'll find out when we arrive."

Sebastian chuckled. "But by then it may be too late. Of course, if you were to ask politely, I may be inclined to grant you with _some_ knowledge."

"You have quite a way with words - suggesting things without promising them." The boy commented.

"As would be expected. A demon shouldn't lie and so it would be troublesome for one with the status that I have to make unnecessary commitments that may lead to unforeseen results."

Ciel had to hide a smirk, but his eyes lit up with the joy of a small victory and Sebastian frowned as he realised he had unintentionally gifted the boy with information.

"Oi, Sebastian!"

The boy almost smiled, an interruption – what perfect timing. Said interruption was a teenage boy – at least, he looked it – with shoulder length violet hair and extravagant jewellery adorned clothing.

Sebastian sighed before looking at the teen. "Soma, how nice of you to talk to me. For the _fourth_ time, today."

Soma grinned and looked at Ciel, "Who's the little one?"

"Ah, how rude of me," Sebastian murmured, "Ciel, this is Gluttony. Soma, this is Ciel."

Ciel looked up at Sebastian inquisitively. "Am I to assume that Lucifer, Gluttony and the likes are just titles rather than names?"

Sebastian smirked. "Aren't you a sharp little kitty? Our titles are inherent, and we generally refer to each other by name – but that's a privilege of the higher levels only."

"So I must call him 'Gluttony'?"

"Unless he asks you to do otherwise, it's courtesy."

Ciel sighed. "I didn't expect Hell to be so polite."'

The older demon shrugged, "It's simple aesthetics."

"Call me Soma, Ciel," the purple-haired demon smiled, before turning to Sebastian seriously, "There's a little bit of a problem, my Lord."

"Has your darling Agni refused to spend time with you again?" The said lord asked unsympathetically, "You know, I don't really approve with your attempts to court a holy one."

"The prophecy has been set in motion," Soma murmured, only wincing slightly at the devil's off-hand comment.

Sebastian, Ciel noticed, paled for a moment before looking down to Ciel with a forced smirk. "Looks like we'll have to end our little outing for today, Ciel, I need to deal with something."

Ciel could have laughed. He was free from whatever the demon had had in mind for him.

"Soma, collect our brothers and sisters. We can meet at the mansion."

"My Lord," Soma agreed before running off.

Sebastian looked back at Ciel, with a strange expression on his face. "You seem to be the kind of kid that will get into trouble without an escort," he pondered.

"I'll be fine," was the biting response.

Sebastian smirked. "Close your eyes."

Ciel definitely didn't like the way this was going. Closing one's eyes was like asking to be taken advantage of. That would not be allowable.

"You know, the punishment for prideful humans is to be weighed down so they cannot feel above themselves. I could send you off for your punishment, or you could close your eyes."

Ciel closed his eyes, swearing hatred for the older Demon in his mind. He felt nothing at first, and then a slight pressure over his right eye. The pressure slowly turned into a pain then to a piercing sensation. The boy jumped back and opened his eyes reflexively before glaring at Sebastian.

"The fuck?"

Sebastian smiled, "I was just making sure no one would bother you. You should thank me."

"Don't you have a prophecy to deal with?" Ciel mumbled, looking at his feet.

He heard Sebastian chuckle and when he looked back up a second later, the demon was gone.

* * *

It was a few minutes before Ciel's eye began to sting dully, as if the red light that seemed to seep from hell was irritating it and Ciel hastily brushed his fringe in front of the eye to try and block out the light. That stupid fucking demon, he thought. Prince of hell? Who cares? That guy was just a freaking weirdo.

_Ciel, honey?_

Ciel looked up at hearing a voice and looked around for the source. It had almost sounded like Ra– no, impossible.

Great, he was hearing things now. Not only was he in hell, but he was also crazy!

And where the hell was he supposed to go? What was he to do?

"Ooh, why hello there! Never have I gazed upon such beauty!"

* * *

"Are you sure?" Sebastian demanded, impatiently.

"I wouldn't have reported if I wasn't, Sebastian," Soma pouted, "So what do we do?"

"Why do we need to do anything? It's just a prophecy. We should go do something fun, Sebby!"

"Grell," Sebastian growled, "Have you even read the prophecy?"

"Yes, brother, you need to take this a little more seriously," Madame Red sighed, "Back to Soma's question – What do we do?"

"We need to find the tyrant." Sebastian replied, "We'll have to use the information the prophecy has given us and I'll speak to Charon."

The seven royalty all made to leave before one of them paused. "Oh, Sebastian?"

"Greed?"

"I saw your new little pet on my way here. He seems like a tough cookie. But he's so beautiful! Such eyes, well there's only one cute eye now that you've marked him."

Sebastian scowled. "I'd prefer it if you stayed away from the little kitty. At least, until I'm finished with him."

The one called Greed pouted. "Kitty?" he murmured, "He seemed more like a little robin to me."

[END OF PART 1, CHAPTER 3]

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**A/N: Reviews are what gives me a guilty conscience to update more.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hell To Pay**

**PART 1**

''The hardest part is letting go of your dreams

A drink for the horror that I'm in  
For the good guys, and the bad guys  
For the monsters that I've been  
Three cheers for tyranny  
Unapologetic apathy  
Cause there ain't no way that I'm coming back again"

**- My Chemical Romance, Sleep**

_Chapter Four._

Fuck. Apparently, the water in Hell is an amorphous swirl of silver and black. Good for adding an ominous aura to the place but not so convenient when one wants to find his reflection and see what the hell that god-damned demon did to his fucking eye.

That insane blond freak that had pounced on him before and spouted a heap of words about birds or some shit had been pretty intrigued once he'd seen something on Ciel's eye. At east the freak hadn't stuck around for long, but he could have at least given Ciel a hint of some sort. And know everyone who had looked at him had immediately averted their eyes or turned in the opposite direction.

Ciel sighed: what did it matter, really? He was stuck in Hell and he couldn't remember how he'd died or even his own age.

"You wont wipe out your existence if you jump in there, kid. Trust me, I've tried." A humorless voice sounded from behind him.

Ciel considered jumping in the river he was leaning over anyway, just so he didn't have to face the distinctly feminine voice that had spoken. He _really_ did want to have to face anything else today. Instead he settled for rolling his eyes and turning to her.

She could have been Sebastian's ridiculously hot half-sister. Black, voluminous curly hair and a kind of dark beauty that one could only pull off in Hell. Her black, tight leather attire barely covered her voluptuous curves.

"I wasn't trying to kill myself, I just wanted to find my reflection."

She scoffed, "You're in Hell, your hair hardly matters."

Ciel scowled, "Well if someone would just tell me what's wrong with my eye instead of pissing off once they noticed it, I wouldn't need a mirror."

The woman seemed to hesitate for a second before gesturing for him to approach her. "I'll give it a look for you. You didn't get shot in the head, did you? We keep the wound that kills us off even in the afterlife."

Ciel lifted up his hair so she could see it, and heard a sharp intake of breath.

She took a step back, her spine going rigid and a sort of horror filling the air.

"Where did you get that, that thing?"

Ciel growled. "I don't know what _that thing_ even is!"

She took a shaky breath, "It's the mark, on your eye. The mark of Lucifer. The bastard branded you."

"Sebastian that fu-"

The woman fell to her knees and grabbed Ciel's hand tightly. "Look, boy, you can't trust Sebastian. He might use such pretty words and look so beautiful, but he's a monster. He'll toss you aside as soon as he thinks he has you and you – you'll be nothing."

"How would you know anything?" Ciel asked, frustration leaking into his tone as he realised he sounded almost _defensive_ of Sebastian. As if.

"Because he did it to me!" She shouted, "I had everything! I had my title as Chastity - I was one of the seven virtues of heaven, and I had my friends and my love. My Joker. Even though Joker never treated me different from the others it was okay, because I loved him so much.

"Then Sebastian came along and told me all these pretty things. He said that he loved me, that I deserved better than what my Darling could ever give me and I believed him. I believed the demon. I was even happy when he touched me and I lost my Chastity to him. I fell from the holiest place for him and I was barely here a month before he cast me aside. Too bad, honey, he told me, I guess we'll never know how it could have been.

"After all I did for him and he left me here. The heavenly ones will never take me back, I never get to see my Darling again, and now they've given me a nickname. They call me the Beast. Beast!"

The woman had gotten positively tearful and Ciel watched her awkwardly. So the Prince of Hell was a bastard – Big Surprise there.

Ciel cleared his throat awkwardly, "If they call you a beast, then you should show them. Beasts are strong and independent, to be feared or revered not mocked. Let them see you as strong. Let them beg for you to go back. Don't cry about something you have no bother changing."

Beast looked up at him, a spark of something lightening her formerly dreary expression. "What's your name?" She asked.

"Ciel."

"Ciel," she repeated, her voice cracked as it pronounced his name.

The tone was oddly familiar.

_Ciel, No! Please don't die. You can't leave me. Ciel. Ciel._

Lizzie?

_You Bastard! You killed him! You killed Ciel!_

It felt as if all the air had left his chest, Ciel gasped and struggled to breathe. Why could he hear it – her voice? She sounded so alone and troubled, he realised. With another shuddering gasp Ciel could feel his chest wrack.

Beast looked up at him in surprise before a look of understanding crossed her features. "Ah," she murmured, "Looks like you died from a chest injury. They reopen when people get overly emotional."

Ciel shakily looked down to see that blood had course through an unfelt wound in his chest and stained a deathly scarlet. But that didn't matter. He didn't care how he'd died anymore. Only the fact that he'd done it unable to protect Lizzie.

"I left her," he choked.

"Left who?" Beast asked.

"L-Lizzie. I was meant to protect and I just died. I left her, alone. What if she'd dead too? She trusted me and I killed her."

Beast stood slowly, gracefully and brushed herself down. "Look, what you said to me, before, it was... well, it was what I needed to hear. So if it helps, you seem to be momentarily on Sebastian's good side and he has the book of death in his mansion. He can tell you if your friend is alive or not."

"Sebastian," Ciel repeated with a moment of clarity. He had to find out if his death had been for a reason, if he had protected Lizzie like he'd been trusted to. Even if that meant he had to go see Sebastian. The mark on his eye, the contracting of his bleeding chest – none of that matter in comparison to whether she was okay.

"Be careful, Ciel," Beast told him as he stumbled away.

* * *

"Well, well. Look who's turned up on my doorstep." Ciel didn't exactly know how he'd made it to the front of Sebastian's elaborate mansion, but once he had decided he needed to be there he had somehow _known_ the way. As if it were an instinct.

"Sebastian, I need-"

"Sorry, what was that?" the blasted demon interrupted.

Ciel bristled. "I said, Sebastian-"

"It would appear, little ghost, that you seem to think you can address me however you please."

If he hadn't been on a mission, Ciel would have stalked off by now."Look, I'm not here to have a debate over your proper title with you-"

"Why are you so angry, my little ghost?" Sebastian asked innocently.

You're an infuriating, arrogant bastard who manages to get on my nerves with just a look you're so distasteful and I've only met you today, Ciel thought. Although he settled for merely stating, "You just rub me the wrong way, I guess."

Sebastian chuckled, "Well, if that's the problem, you could always let me rub you the _right_ way."

Maybe it wasn't too late to run away.

Ciel cleared his throat and looked away. "Look, I'm hear because I want to know something, that's all."

"Hm, well perhaps if you voice your request respectfully, Ciel, I'll be more inclined to listen to it."

Ciel sighed, as if to exaggerate how childish the demon was being. "Of course, your Majesty," he began mockingly, "I just wanted to ask if you knew whether... someone died with me?"

He looked surprised. "What is this someone's name?"

"Elizabeth," Ciel murmured, before adding, "Middleford."

Sebastian nodded and Ciel waited.

"Well?" the boy prompted after a moment.

Sebastian smiled, "I'd have to consult my book. I don't memorise the names of everyone as they die."

"Then can you check?" Ciel asked, impatiently.

Sebastian nodded, "It is within my power to check, of course. But if I start giving out that kind of information for free then before you know it every ghost in Hell will want to know about their loved ones and I won't have much reason to refuse."

"Then don't give the information out for free. What do you want?"

"What do you have to give me?"

Ciel thought for a moment. All he had on him was his clothing and they weren't in too good condition nor was he quite willing to part with them. But if Lizzie was dead down here, he would need to find her and look after her as he'd done all his life. "Anything you want that I have the power to give you."

Sebastian pretended to ponder this for a moment before he smirked. "Well then, tomorrow morning I'll look up the fate of your little friend, as long as you go through on your side of the deal."

"And what exactly is my side of the deal?"

"The only thing you possess to give me. Your time. You must spend the night here, in my mansion, with me."

[END OF PART 1, CHAPTER 4]

* * *

**A/N: Yes, I'm back. Firstly, a couple of recent reviews managed to guilt me into remembering this story and after I had a nice big think about it, I realised exactly where I want this plot to go, meaning I won't be winging it one chapter at a time as I had been.**

**Secondly, I re-read the prior three chapters, did a little bit of editing (but not enough to be too noticeable, I believe) and fixed them up because I want this story to look pretty. So if you see anything wrong in any present/future chapters (spelling, grammar etc.) I would adore for you to alert me so that I can fix it up a bit.**

**And Finally (AND MOST IMPORTANTLY) I will definitely keep updating this story as often as possible, but please keep in mind that next week I have to do a couple of tests that will determine whether I can get into my desired university course and then the following week is my block exams (the joys of being in your last year of high school, yes?) so I ask that you be patient in case I don't have the time to update again right away.**

**Thanks for reading, and lots of love if you're (still) with me and reviewing. xx.**


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